Novak Djokovic withdraws from third straight tournament as injury woes continue

Novak Djokovic has withdrawn from the upcoming Masters 1000 tournament in Madrid as he continues to struggle with injury.

The Serb has now pulled out of three consecutive Masters events, having not played since a gruelling three-set defeat to Britain’s Jack Draper in the round of 16 at Indian Wells in March.

He did not compete in Miami and later withdrew from the Monte Carlo Masters, the opening tournament at that level of the clay-court swing.

He posted on social media on Friday: “Madrid, unfortunately I won’t be able to compete at the Madrid Open this year. I’m continuing my recovery in order to be back soon. Hasta pronto!”

The world No 4 had earlier implied he would withdraw from the tournament despite being spotted practicing on clay in Marbella this week.

He attended a basketball game between Real Madrid and Crvena zvezda in Madrid on Thursday night and was asked by Spanish broadcaster Movistar about his plans to compete in Madrid. He said: “I hope so, I hope so. I’m working towards that. I’m not sure.

“I’ve been struggling a little bit, physically, with an injury, so trying to address that and play as long as I can. Now, I have a little bit more time, obviously as I’m not playing as much, so I get a chance to enjoy other sports and great athleticism.”

He confirmed less than 24 hours later that he would not be taking part, while the Madrid Open organisers wrote: “We hope to see you back here as soon as possible so we can enjoy your tennis as we have done so many times in the Caja Magica.”

Djokovic is on the start list for the next Masters 1000 event, the Italian Open, which begins in Rome in less than three weeks’ time.

The three-time Madrid champion has not played in over a month and cited a shoulder injury as his reason for withdrawing from Miami. He has only competed in two tournaments this year, finishing runner-up to Carlos Alcaraz in the Australian Open before exiting in the fourth round at Indian Wells.

Madrid, which was won by Casper Ruud last year, may yet suffer more high-profile withdrawals before it gets underway.

Draper pulled out of the Barcelona Open while trailing in the third set of his first-round match against Tomas Martin Etcheverry, having suffered an apparent knee injury.

Two-time Madrid champion Alcaraz is another doubt after he picked up a right wrist injury in his opening-round win over Otto Virtanen in Barcelona and withdrew before his next match.

Jannik Sinner, who has won all three of the Masters events so far this year – Indian Wells, Miami and Monte Carlo – also cast doubt on his participation in the Spanish capital after an intense start to the season. After winning his first Monte Carlo title he said: “I’ll take two or three days off, then I’ll evaluate with my team whether to go to Madrid or not.”